Hamman Stops Suganuma at ShoXC

Aug 16, 2008 3:54 AM John Chandler

Jared Hamman. Photo by Tom Casino/EliteXC.

While their first bout in April ended in controversy and left many lingering questions, Friday’s battle between Jared Hamman and Poai Suganuma did anything but as Hamman stopped Suganuma via first-round TKO in front of an enthusiastic crowd at the Table Mountain Casino in Friant, California.

Early on, it appeared as if Suganuma was about to have Hamman’s number again as the Hawaiian dropped Hamman and battered him with punches on the ground during the fight’s opening moments. However the tide began to turn once Hamman successfully executed a judo throw that sent Suganuma stumbling to the canvas.

Hamman quickly took his opponent’s back but Suganuma was quick to shake Hamman off of him and stand up. Hamman proceeded to stun Suganuma with a straight right and then knocked him down with a combination. Suganuma bounced up and tried to take the fight to the ground but Hamman was relentless with his strikes, pounding away on Suganuma with hammer fists until the referee stepped in to stop the fight.

Instead of getting up and arguing the stoppage, Suganuma laid on the canvas in a daze, the opposite ending of their previous affair. Hamman’s win now sets up the possibility of a rubber match between the two, something that Hamman was certainly not opposed to when asked during his post-fight interview with Stephen Quadros.

Jared Hamman vs. Poai Suganuma. Photo by Tom Casino/EliteXC.

“It feels good to get revenge,” Hamman said after the fight. “But I feel bad for [Suganuma]. I respect him as a fighter and as a person. Po’ai didn’t have to take this fight. Others probably would have moved on without giving me a rematch. But he did and I appreciate it. He gave me a rematch. If that’s what they want, I’ll do the same for him.’’

Undercard Action

Fabricio Camoes earned his second straight win inside the confines of EliteXC with a quick submission of former “Ultimate Fighter” contestant Sam Morgan.

Fabricio Camoes vs. Sam Morgan. Photo by Tom Casino/EliteXC.

Morgan was outclassed going into this fight and it showed as Camoes quickly took him down, landing in mount as soon as the two hit the canvas. Morgan immediately give up his back and Camoes sunk in a rear naked choke that forced Morgan to tap out just 47 seconds into the proceedings.

“I want some competition,” Camoes said after the bout. “Where are the big boys at? I want the big boys to step up and I want to fight for the belt.”

PRIDE Fighting Championships veteran Cyrille Diabate was impressive in his EliteXC debut, dismantling Jaime Fletcher over three rounds en route to a one-sided unanimous decision win in his favor.

After putting his famed kickboxing skills on display at the beginning of the fight, Diabate found himself in some trouble during the fight’s midway point, twice being taken down and put on his back by Fletcher. However Diabate’s aggression and accurate strikes were the stronger factor in the bout, as he used his new-found wrestling game picked up at Team Quest in recent months to pick Fletcher apart on the feet.

Cyrille Diabate vs. Jaime Fletcher. Photo by Tom Casino/EliteXC.

Just like at the end of the second round, Diabate pounded on a bloodied and defenseless Fletcher all throughout the third round, landing an array of punches and elbows to the face and body. Fletcher proved hard to finish however and Diabate was only able to escape with a decision win, his first since the spring of last year.

“I’m not very pleased with myself but it’s a win at least,” Diabate said. “I could have done a lot of things better. He was tough. I had a good amount of ring rust coming in and I wasn’t able to execute as well as I wanted to. I’ll get back in the gym and I’ll be at 100% for my next fight here.”

Female fighting pioneer Debi Purcell stepped back into the cage for the first time in two years to take on England native Rosi Sexton in the first fight in EliteXC’s newly formed 130 lb. division for women. A back-and-forth battle saw Sexton narrowly squeeze out a split decision win over the veteran, her third victory in a row.

Debi Purcell vs. Rosi Sexton. Photo by Tom Casino/EliteXC.

The night’s first televised bout saw King of the Cage middleweight champion Keith Berry fall to Ray Lizama in the second round by way of strikes in a definite shoe-in for the televised broadcast’s “Fight of the Night.”